Battle Mode
by wordslinger
Summary: For some inexplicable reason she was under the impression that warrior knights were stronger than mages. Each loss brought on astonishing incredulity on her part. Gamer AU. Jerza. Complete.
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's Note: For Jelulz based on the following prompt -**_

 _ **"Imagine your OTP is playing a game together. Person A is the more competitive and cocky one while Person B is focused and experienced. Despite all of A's bragging and trash talk they are losing to Person B, but refuse to accept it. A then begins to seduce and distract B however they can (kissing/biting their neck, groping them, etc.) until Person B can no longer focus on playing anymore. The two forget the game and proceed with steamy sex on the floor."**_

 _ **Yes, I realize some of the gaming logistics in this aren't exactly accurate, but I don't care. In my world (where I design the platform and game) this is completely plausible.**_

* * *

Battle mode was his least favorite. It was pointless and, in his opinion, took away from the main game. However, Erza wouldn't be appeased any other way so he capitulated. Once a week, without fail, she'd challenge him to a best-of-three match. She'd never actually beat him but that fact didn't seem to temper her exuberance… or trash talking. For some inexplicable reason she was under the impression that warrior knights were stronger than mages. Each loss brought on astonishing incredulity on her part.

It wasn't that Erza's character was weak. She habitually decimated members of her player's guild in battle mode and had a reputation for being a gracious winner – even offering advice to players not on her skill level. Regardless of her grace when winning, though, Erza was the worst kind of loser. More than once Jellal had to rescue a thrown controller from behind one piece of furniture or another. She would glare at him and criticize his techniques, despite not knowing anything about playing a mage class.

Jellal's own player's guild teased him for carrying on with Erza but never complained about the way he ditched them every Saturday to waste hours in battle mode. They had a healthy respect for their leader who regularly wiped the floor with the famous _Titania_. When his second in command, _TimeWitch_ , pressed him for information on how he'd even become acquainted with Erza – player's guilds didn't always closely interact – he eventually revealed that they were neighbors in real life. _TimeWitch_ had guessed on her own that they were much more than just neighbors.

"Are you letting me win?" Erza snapped.

He grinned and glanced over at her. Erza leaned forward on her cushion with her face twisted in irritation. "Nope."

"Because I'll know if you throw this match."

"I would never take away your thrill of victory like that. The day you beat me will be all you." Jellal leaned easily against the footboard of his bed and glanced out the window. It was snowing again.

"You should pay attention! I'm about to destroy you with my new enchanted sword."

"Let's see it then." Erza's sword, and the special attack stills that went along with it, were impressive but he'd been busy the past week too. Her push against him was deflected with a barrage of dark magic. His XP meter shot up and, technically, Jellal could let Erza's knight take hits at him until the clock ran down and he'd still win by an embarrassing margin.

 _"What the hell, Jellal?!"_ She bit out. "You were _not_ casting spells like that last week!"

He shrugged. "I may have cleared a dungeon or two."

 _"Or two?"_

"Well, you know, it's winter break and all. Why not?"

"I hate you," she muttered.

Jellal sighed and tossed his controller aside. He scooted over onto Erza's cushion and inched his arm around her waist. "No you don't."

"Oh, yes I _do._ " Her words were barely anything other than a growl. "You're so cocky that you're not even watching the match anymore."

"It's boring." Jellal brushed her hair from her shoulder and kissed her neck.

"Glad to hear you think playing me is boring. I won't come over on Saturdays anymore then." She shrugged her shoulder in an attempt to shake him off. Jellal did not oblige and continued to plant open-mouthed kisses on her neck and just behind her ear. "I'll take up knitting."

"Nothing about _you_ is boring, Erza. But I don't want to battle anymore."

"You're only saying that because you're winning!" She huffed frustratedly. "You're winning and you're _not even playing!_ "

Jellal's hand at her waist slid under her sweater and grazed her skin. He moved up her ribs and stopped just below the wire of her bra. "Why is winning against me so important to you?" he whispered in her ear.

Erza stifled a shudder and half-heartedly tried to twist away from him. "Because I don't like losing."

"But it's just me. Who cares?" Jellal quickly lifted her and pulled her into his lap. The edge of Erza's skirt caught between his stomach and her body. Jellal preferred winter to summer on most days but her heavy leggings could sometimes present a problem.

 _"I_ care." Despite her refusal to give up Erza settled into the space between his crossed legs. "It's embarrassing. I feel like everyone in-game knows you kick my ass every week."

"Maybe, but during the rest of the week you're destroying everyone else." Jellal worked his thumb and forefinger under the bra wire and used his free hand to sweep the mass of delicious smelling red hair from the back of her neck. He returned to kissing her there and inhaled the scent of her shampoo. How did she always manage to smell so incredible?

Erza growled in frustration again. Jellal didn't have to peek at the screen to know why. His mage was equipped with an auto-attack item. If he became inactive for more than a few seconds the character would use basic melee skills to defend himself. Even though physical combat was his weakest skill, he was so far ahead in points it didn't matter. The battle timer would run out soon enough.

Jellal released Erza's hair and found the spot on her rear where her skirt rode up. He tugged on the waistband of her leggings. "These need to go."

She turned her head slightly from the screen. "You could at least wait until the match is over."

"I already told you," he said, working the elastic over her hips that stubbornly pressed against him. "It's boring."

Erza's jaw twitched as she kicked off the leggings. "One of these days, Jellal –" She cut off with a gasp when his fingers pressed between her legs.

"One of these days… _what?_ " He sucked a mouthful of her skin into his mouth and grazed his teeth over it. His reward was the way Erza's eyes momentarily fluttered closed and her head fell back against his shoulder. She was wet and warm and the aggravation of their battle had worked her into a state he easily capitalized on.

"Jellal," Erza breathed just before she clenched around his fingers.

"Hm?"

"I hate you."

He laughed softly and tightened his arm around her torso. His hand finally wormed its way under the cup of her bra and even though the wire dug into him he didn't remove it. Jellal didn't need Erza to be naked in order to be completely aroused by her.

The sound of the battle timer reaching zero startled her and she flung her controller back over them onto his bed. Without warning she spun around and pushed him onto his back. Erza straddled his lap and leaned down very close to his face.

"You cheated."

"I'd never stoop to cheating." His hands grabbed her thighs and moved under the hem of her skirt.

"You did too. Distracting me from the game is cheating." Erza yanked at his belt buckle with an unnecessary force.

"By the time I stopped playing, you winning was a statistical improbability. Even with your enchanted sword." He lifted his hips enough for her to yank his pants down.

"There's no way you can know that! I have plenty of things in my equipment space that you don't even know about!"

Jellal sighed and released her thighs. He tugged at the edge of her sweater and she pulled it over her head leaving wisps of hair charged with static floating around her face. Erza planted her hands on either side of his face and kissed him with a gentleness he didn't expect.

"Next week, I'm going to destroy you," she whispered against his lips.

He smiled and pushed her onto her back. "I'm going to hold you to that, Erza. I expect great and deadly things from you."

Erza reached between them and grabbed his hardened cock. She positioned him at her entrance and he easily slid inside. Despite her fierce personality, Erza had many soft parts that Jellal loved. Her red hair always intoxicated him with the strong citrus scent of her soap, the sides of her neck were always begging to be kissed, and there was a spot behind her left knee that made her stomach muscles tremble with anticipation. However, the softest part of Erza was on the inside. The way she felt wrapped around him with all that wet heat made him think there wasn't anything more pleasurable in the known universe.

His thrusts were smooth and deep. Erza's fingernails raked down his back and he hoped she'd leave a scratch that would sting in the shower later – he was a bit of a masochist and the hot water on her marks would be a perfect way to end the day once she'd gone home. Jellal's head dropped to her covered breasts and he enjoyed the look of them so much he decided to leave the bra. He knew she didn't pick her underclothes for his gaze but he loved her selections all the same. His mouth settled over one mound and her nipple rose to press against the purple lace. His teeth scraped across the delicate flower design and Erza's back arched into him.

One smooth leg hitched high around his hip and she whimpered in irritation. Erza had a hard time climaxing unless he fucked her hard and fast or applied direct stimulation. So he grabbed her thigh and pressed it into her chest to gain leverage.

"Right there," she whispered as she bit into her bottom lip. Jellal watched the tension build on her face and smiled when she grasped at his shoulders painfully. "I –" He knew she'd never finish the thought.

Jellal had long ago learned the skill of holding out on himself until Erza had reached her peak. She wasn't an easy girl to please, and he didn't like to brag, but he liked to think that he'd leveled up to a previously undiscovered area. Early in their relationship she'd been a little hesitant and embarrassed about the things she needed to orgasm, but Jellal didn't mind the learning curve. Someone else's failure to make her eyes roll into the back of her head was his triumph.

Breathing hard and with trembling arms, Jellal fell onto her chest. The skin between her breasts smelled like something so utterly _Erza_ that he decided he'd like to drown there. She raked her fingers through his hair and sighed loudly.

"I still hate you."

Jellal smiled. "I love you, too."


	2. Chapter 2

_**Author's Note: I don't know that I can forgive myself for posting this along side another piece. Both went up on the same weekend and this one got lost in the shuffle. I've been sitting on that spite for a year. So here's a second part that I can't let go of.**_

* * *

"Have you seen my headset?" he asked, pawing through a desk drawer stuffed with cables, adaptors, controllers, and the occasional dead battery.

"No." Erza's voice was muffled by the blankets on his bed. Jellal sighed and checked the last drawer. The headset he found was old but it would do.

"Do you still have a headache?"

"Yeah."

Jellal tossed the headset on the surface of his desk and stood. He peeked under the blankets and found his girlfriend browsing twitter on her phone. The white light illuminated her face.

"You know that your app has a night mode now, right? Though, I'm pretty sure _any_ mode will make your headache worse."

Erza pouted and slid her phone off the edge of his bed. She gathered his blanket under her chin and gazed up at him pitifully.

"Do you have any naproxen?" she asked. "It's the only thing that that works for me anymore."

"I'll check my mom's bathroom. I think you cleaned my bottle out last week."

When he returned to his bedroom, Erza had moved to the foot of his bed and was curling the tip of Lily's tail around her fingers. Lily was an older cat and didn't take kindly to anyone but Jellal's mother, Erza, and Jellal himself. Any and all other visitors were glared at from the shadows or ignored completely.

When Jellal offered her the pill bottle and a glass of water, Erza rolled over onto her stomach, shook out five tablets, and tossed them back with the water.

"Are you sure you should take that many?" Jellal sat on the end of the bed and tidied the scarlet hair that matched his black sheets perfectly. Strands of red tumbled over the edge of the mattress and she grimaced.

"It works. The stuff my doctor wants me to take makes me nauseous."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay. They always pass eventually." Erza finally smiled and grabbed his hand. "It's alright if I stay and have a nap here, isn't it? I won't be interrupting your super important guild meeting?"

"Maybe I should swear you to secrecy first," he said with a grin. "I can't have you tattling all _our_ secrets back to _your_ guild."

"I would never betray you."

"I don't know, Erza, sometimes you can be pretty spiteful." Erza squeezed his hand painfully. " _Ouch!_ See? That's what I mean!"

"I'm sorry," she said kissing his fingers. "Can I stay now?"

"I guess I'll allow it."

"You drive a hard bargain, Guild Master Jellal." Erza tugged on his hand. "Come lay down with me before you have to Skype."

Jellal turned and slid under the blanket next to Erza, who immediately found the bottom hem of his shirt and worked her way beneath it.

"You're a seductress, Erza," he whispered before kissing her. She discarded his shirt over the foot of the bed but he caught her wrist before she could get her hand in his sweatpants. "We have less than ten minutes."

"So?" she asked going for his neck with her mouth.

"So that's not enough time for sex."

"Says who?" Erza twisted her wrist from his grasp and moved his hand to her hip. "We can be fast."

"Not _that_ fast." He swallowed back a groan when she hooked her leg around his waist and pressed herself fully against him.

"You're wasting time trying to convince me we don't have time." Erza kissed him forcefully and bit his bottom lip. Jellal lost the last of his cool and grabbed her wrist again to pin it to the bed. He lifted himself over her and she smiled as she sank further into the mattress.

"Ultear is going to gripe at me," he said yanking her pants off, and working his own down around his thighs. "Because I am _definitely_ going to be late today."

Erza's eyes fluttered closed and Jellal focused on the way her teeth bit into her own bottom lip. He grasped her thigh and hitched it through the crook of his arm. Just before thrusting into her, he touched his tongue to her worried lip and took a fervent kiss. Erza groaned loudly when he set a faster than normal pace and hissed at the delightful pain of her fingernails digging into his shoulders.

In an effort to speed things along, Jellal reached between their bodies and found the spot he knew would make her lose her breath. His fingers circled her fast then slow and counterclockwise. Erza's back arched off the bed and she found her climax with a string of whispered expletives. It was rare to bring her full circle so quickly but Jellal was on a deadline. Later, if she was up for it, he'd get the rest of her clothes off and take his time.

A shrill ringing from his laptop cut through their afterglow. Jellal dropped kisses to Erza's forehead and lips before rolling off of her.

"I told you we had enough time," she breathed, wrapping the blankets back around her shoulders. Jellal pulled his pants back around his waist and retrieved his t-shirt. He glanced at the time on his laptop and chuckled.

"Actually, we didn't. Ultear is late."

"Mm, whatever," Erza muttered. Jellal slid the shirt over his head and glanced back at Erza before taking a seat at his desk. Curls of red stood out against the sheets that drooped over the foot of the bed. Her eyes were already closed and the mound of blankets rose and fell gently.

"What took you so long?" Ultear's voice was the first to hit his ear. Jellal settled into his chair and sighed.

"I had some business to take care of. You were late too." Ultear didn't have the chance to defend herself before their other guildmates started popping into the chat. "I think we should discuss that raid first. I don't want to have anymore arguments about loot distribution."

"Fair enough," Ultear said slowly. He let her add everyone to the chat and waited for more video bubbles to pop up. Usually only himself, Ultear, Meredy, and Erik bothered with the video. Due to the time difference, Jellal suspected his other guildmates weren't dressed to be seen.

"Before we get into that last clusterfuck of a raid," Erik said irritably. "I just want to say I think it's bullshit that Macbeth is allowed to skip meetings. He never grinds with us either and I think he's probably –"

"This isn't your personal gripe session, Erik," Ultear snapped. "We get it. You don't like him but he _does_ contribute when it counts."

"Jellal doesn't play with us on Saturdays either," Meredy said with a laugh. "He's too busy with _Titania_."

"Don't tease him, Meredy," Ultear said smoothly. " _Someone_ has to take her ego down a few notches."

Jellal rolled his eyes and scrolled through his spreadsheet. He thought maybe he was the only one who kept such a detailed roster but their highly successful guild was proof enough of it's effectiveness. The chatter went on but he tuned most of it out. Ultear was very good at keeping their team of loose cannons in line.

"So Jellal," Meredy said again. "Are you into cosplay?"

"Excuse me?" His eyes flit back to the Skype window. "I'm not following."

Meredy giggled and poked at her laptop screen. "That red hair behind you. Is it a wig or is there someone in your bed?"

Jellal glanced backward instinctively even though he knew she was referring to the mane of red hair he'd admired earlier.

"Uh," he turned back toward his screen and contemplated pulling himself out of video but it was already too late.

"So the rumors are true and she really _does_ have crazy red hair?" Meredy asked, her face moving even closer into her screen.

"It's not _crazy!_ " Jellal said defensively. "And I don't even know what you're talking about!" His eyes zeroed in on Ultear's video bubble. "Ultear, you promised!"

"I didn't say anything!" She held up her hands defensively. "You gave yourself away all on your own."

"Okay, fine. Yes, _Titania_ is a person I know in real life. She's my neighbor and yes she's napping in my bed. I've known her since we were in preschool, for fuck's sake."

Meredy and Ultear laughed and Erik rolled his eyes. "No wonder you waste every Saturday with her in Battle Mode."

"Well, Ultear isn't wrong about her ego," he muttered glancing back once more. "It's just a thing we do. Can we please stay on topic and stop gossiping about my girlfriend?"

"So she's your girlfriend too?" Meredy asked lightly. Jellal ran his hands over his face and bristled when Erza laughed from under the blankets. She sat up and slid over the side of the bed – and out of the view of his camera – to pull her pants back on.

"So I have an ego, huh?" she asked softly.

"You _know_ you do." He pursed his lips and tried to dodge her hand as she walked by toward his door. Her fingers found purchase in his hair anyway and nearly knocked the headset off completely.

"You like it." Erza grinned at him over her shoulder before leaving the room. "I'm going to have a shower before heading home. Come find me when you're done with your little meeting."

Jellal scowled and turned back to his laptop screen. "So are we done here or what?"

"By all means, Jellal," Ultear said with a sly grin. "Go have that shower. We're through." Meredy was full on cackling when he disconnected from the call. Erza would pay for embarrassing him. No one would be home for at least another hour. He would make her beg.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Note: This seems to be an annual thing now. Here's the November 2017 installment haha!**_

* * *

His phone chimed again and Jellal sighed before glancing away from his laptop. He had an entire screen of texts from Erza but he _really_ needed to finish his assignment before answering them. Erza had a way of taking over an afternoon. Jellal turned back to his laptop and tried to focus. He jumped when the text chime changed to her ringtone. With an even deeper sigh, he took the call.

"Hey –"

"I'm getting an error," she huffed on the other end of the line. "I've got a raid in twenty minutes and I'm getting an _error!"_

Jellal leaned back in his chair and scrubbed his hands over his face. "Did you try turning it off and then back on?"

"Of course I did!"

"Did you try resetting your router? Sometimes –"

"Jellal," she said tersely. "I'm not an idiot."

"Have you checked the Xbox Live status page?"

"That was the first thing I did!" Erza whined forlornly.

"Maybe you should contact tech support on twitter," Jellal said absently, focusing again on his assignment. He only needed four hundred more words and he could be done with the post.

 _"Excuse me?"_ Erza demanded. "Tech support?"

Jellal immediately regretted his words. "Well –"

"How long have we been together, Jellal?" She didn't give him time to answer. "I can't believe you would even consider pawning me off on _tech support!"_

"Erza, please, I wasn't trying to pawn you off. I'm just in the middle of an assignment and it's a last minute thing and I really need to finish it."

"I'm sorry," she whispered after a long moment. "I'll figure it out. It's fine." Erza ended the call and the face of his phone went black.

Jellal stared at his laptop screen for a full minute before snapping the machine shut. He pulled on a sweatshirt and his snow boots and sent his mom a text that he was stepping out for a bit. Lily watched him dig in the coat closet for a hat before giving up.

"Don't judge me, Lily," he murmured, foregoing the hat. "You know how she is." Jellal hid his hands in his sweatpants pockets and sighed to himself. "I gotta fix it."

Lily stretched out across the back of the couch and squeezed his eyes shut.

"If I'm not back before mom –" Jellal paused with his hand on the front door knob. "I don't know why I'm talking to you. You're the cat."

The space between his house and Erza's wasn't a long stretch of land but when everything was hidden under a foot of snow it felt like miles. Earlier that day the street plows had blown fresh piles of snow all over the sidewalk so Jellal braved the grass hoping he wouldn't trip into anything. When he reached Erza's front door, he let himself in. Her house was warm and his fingers were grateful – it had been a mistake to not wear a hat and gloves. Jellal left his boots on the mat and climbed the stairs to Erza's bedroom.

She wasn't immediately visible but the mound of blankets on her bed and the tips of red peeking from underneath gave her away. Jellal closed the door softly behind him and crouched in front of her television cabinet. The screen still displayed an error and after poking around the back of the console he discovered the wireless antenna was loose. When he pulled it out the plastic USB cover peeled away from the cord way too easily. He glanced over his shoulder at Erza's bed but she hadn't moved from beneath the blankets.

"Your wireless adaptor cable is broken," Jellal said quietly. He sat back on his heels and pulled out his phone. "I don't think you'll be able to do the raid today." Jellal pulled up the Amazon website and spent a few moments placing an order for a new adaptor and antenna, then set it aside. "Hey," he said, peeking under the blankets. "Are you mad at me?"

"No," Erza said softly, not looking at him.

"Are you sure?" He inched closer and slid his hand over the sheets to the tangle of scarlet hair. "I'm sorry for blowing you off. I'm just swamped and I wanted to get some things out of the way."

"I'm sorry for snapping at you on the phone." She finally tilted her head upward and smiled apologetically. "You're not my personal IT guy, Jellal. It was unfair."

"You're easily frustrated," he said with a shrug and a grin. "I know this about you already."

"Did you finish your assignment?" she asked, reaching for his hand.

"No, but it can wait."

"Does your mom work tonight?"

"She'll be home before dinner. Lily is holding down the fort."

"Can I come over for dinner? My mom's flight was delayed. She won't be back until tomorrow."

"I feel like I'd be in trouble with _my_ mom if I didn't make sure you stayed with us tonight."

Erza's grin turned playful and she crawled out from under the blankets and rolled over the edge of the bed to land on top of him. "Are you sure I won't distract you from your homework?"

"Well, I don't see how you'd be able to do that from the guest bedroom."

 _"Excuse me?"_ she said with the same offense as before. "The _guest_ bedroom?" Erza scowled and tugged on his sweatshirt. "Take this off and apologize to me properly!"

Jellal tossed his sweatshirt and t-shirt up to her bed and pushed her over onto her back. Once again he was confronted with her wool leggings.

"This is my least favorite part of winter," he muttered, pulling them off awkwardly.

"I don't know," Erza teased. "I think you should have to work for it a little bit."

"I fixed your Xbox," Jellal said dryly.

"Mm, technically you didn't fix it. You just figured out what was wrong."

 _"And_ I ordered you a new adapter like a good boyfriend."

Erza's hands slid over his shoulders and she pulled him down against her. "You _are_ a good boyfriend. I don't think I could find a better one if I took out an ad."

"I bet I could find a less demanding girlfriend, though." Jellal nudged her nose with his and kissed the underside of her jaw.

"You'd get bored fast," she whispered, arching her back so he could remove her shirt. "You've always liked to play at a high level on the hard setting."

"You're such a nerd." He took her lips in a bruising kiss before moving downward to her neck and between her breasts. She had on a peach pink bra with embroidered flowers. Erza's choice in underthings amused him. He admired the confident part of her that _knew_ she looked good in everything from expensive bras and panties to the cheap nightshirts printed with kittens she bought at the dollar store.

His trail of kisses left off just below her navel and he tugged her panties off. Erza moved to hitch her legs around him but he dug his fingers into her thighs and held her still. Her confusion melted into a heavy sigh when his tongue brushed the hot, slick place between her legs.

Erza was a _toucher._ Whenever he'd kiss her, she'd grab handfuls of his shirt or play in the ends of his hair at the base of his neck. She liked to grasp his arms or shoulders when he was on top of her, and when _she_ was on top her palms were almost always flat on his chest or propping her weight on his thighs. When he went down, however, her inability to settle her hands delighted him.

They'd start out in his hair and eventually she'd tangle her fingers in her own hair. There was something about throwing Erza off balance that he absolutely _lived_ for. She'd never been easy to please but coming from left field left her open to surprise. A surprised Erza was a pliant Erza. Jellal could feel the muscles of her thighs twitching and her belly quivering. The moment she gave in to the peak, he slid back up her body, pinned her bent leg to her chest, and entered her swiftly.

The challenge was dragging her over the edge twice. He was determined, though, and had her attention. Erza's fingernails dug into his forearms and Jellal's eyes were stuck on the way her teeth bit into her bottom lip.

 _"There,"_ she whispered. One smooth leg lifted around his hip and he grinned darkly. Jellal set a dizzying pace but when Erza gasped sharply and clenched around him he released her leg and lowered himself against her body. She was sweating and the silk of her bra was soft against his chest.

Jellal liked the contrast of sensation that came from the fast and hard way Erza needed him and the slower finish he preferred. She was right. He'd be bored with anyone else. Erza _was_ a lot of work but he loved every second of it.

She stretched her arms above her head and relaxed. "What's on the dinner menu?"

"Whatever's in that baking dish my mom put in the fridge this morning," Jellal breathed, leaving soft, wet kisses along her collar bone.

"I'm starving."

"You're ruining my romantic afterglow."

Erza snorted. "Is that what you call it when you're too soft to move?"

"Yes." He kissed her lips one last time. "Also I think I gave myself rug burn on my knees."

"I'll make it up to you tonight," she whispered. "I'll make sure we match."


End file.
